WebProNews » Filmhttp://www.webpronews.com
Breaking News in Tech, Search, Social, & BusinessTue, 03 Mar 2015 19:02:09 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.8.1Amazon Is Going to Make Movies for Theatrical Release and Quick Debut on Primehttp://www.webpronews.com/amazon-is-going-to-make-movies-for-theatrical-release-and-quick-debut-on-prime-2015-01
http://www.webpronews.com/amazon-is-going-to-make-movies-for-theatrical-release-and-quick-debut-on-prime-2015-01#commentsMon, 19 Jan 2015 14:42:04 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=414198Earlier this month, Amazon picked up its first-ever major award win, taking home a Golden Globe award for its original series Transparent. Is Amazon now shooting for Oscars?

The company has announced plans to produce at least a dozen original films a year, starting this year. The movies will be created with theatrical release in mind, but will appear on Amazon Prime Instant Video four to eight weeks after their theatrical premiere.

That’s a very quick window, considering it can take up to a year for films to make it from the big screen to the small screen.

“We look forward to expanding our production efforts into feature films. Our goal is to create close to twelve movies a year with production starting later this year,” said Roy Price, Vice President, Amazon Studios. “Not only will we bring Prime Instant Video customers exciting, unique, and exclusive films soon after a movie’s theatrical run, but we hope this program will also benefit filmmakers, who too often struggle to mount fresh and daring stories that deserve an audience.”

The guy Amazon has chosen to run the new initiative, Ted Hope, has experience in garnering acclaim for independent films. His production company, Good Machine, produced films like Eat Drink Man Woman, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and American Splendor.

“Audiences already recognize that Amazon has raised the bar with productions in the episodic realm, tackling bold material in unique ways and collaborating with top talent, both established and emerging. To help carry the torch into the feature film world for such an innovative company is a tremendous opportunity and responsibility,” said Ted Hope, the new Head of Production for Amazon Original Movies. “Amazon Original Movies will be synonymous with films that amaze, excite, and move our fans, wherever customers watch. I am incredibly thrilled to be part of this.”

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/amazon-is-going-to-make-movies-for-theatrical-release-and-quick-debut-on-prime-2015-01/feed0The Interview Has Made $31M Online, Still Won’t Break Evenhttp://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-has-made-31m-online-still-wont-break-even-2015-01
http://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-has-made-31m-online-still-wont-break-even-2015-01#commentsWed, 07 Jan 2015 15:41:37 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=412725If the metric of success for Sony regarding The Interview is recouping its money (which at this point it’s probably not), then the film will likely fall short. But by any other metric, the Seth Rogen/James Franco film has been a pretty big hit.

Sony has announced that the film, which was released online on Christmas Eve, has since raked in over $31 million in streaming revenues. It’s been rented or purchased more the 4.3 million times. That means that it’s doubled its opening weekend take – which was around $15 million.

These numbers are even more impressive when you consider piracy, which surely cut into Sony’s earnings. In the first two days following official availability, The Interview was downloaded over 1.5 million times via torrent sites.

With $31 million, The Interview is officially Sony’s biggest online release ever. It was the most-talked about nugget of pop culture for a couple weeks. By these metrics, it’s a success.

Of course, a Christmas Day wide release (what was originally planned) would have likely been much better. To date, the movie has only grossed about $5 million in theaters – but that’s due to a severely limited release.

At this point the Sony hack, which started the ball rolling and ultimately led to the film’s cancellation and subsequent revival, most certainly has prevented the film from breaking even. The Interview was made on a $44 million budget, and Sony is said to have spent at least $35 million on marketing efforts.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-has-made-31m-online-still-wont-break-even-2015-01/feed0‘The Interview’ Nabs $15M Online in First Weekendhttp://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-nabs-15m-online-in-first-weekend-2014-12
http://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-nabs-15m-online-in-first-weekend-2014-12#commentsMon, 29 Dec 2014 14:32:18 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=411857Sony’s decision to release the now-controversial film The Interview online seems to have paid off – at least financially.

According to the company, the film has already generated over $15 million in sales, having been downloaded or rented over two million times in the past few days. By comparison, it’s made about $3 million in theaters (though it did have a rather limited release).

“We have never given up on releasing The Interview and we’re excited our movie will be in a number of theaters on Christmas Day. At the same time, we are continuing our efforts to secure more platforms and more theaters so that this movie reaches the largest possible audience.”

The first wave of the theatrical release wound up hitting around 300 locations.

But the theatrical release isn’t where Sony made its money over the weekend. On Christmas Eve, it decided to release the film online – on YouTube, Xbox Video, Google Play, and SeetheInterview.com (a Sony site).

You can buy it for $15 or rent it for $6.

“In addition to the strong turnout for its limited theatrical release over the holiday weekend, after only four days, The Interview already ranks as Sony Pictures #1 online film of all time,” said Sony in a release.

The $15 million pull in its first few days of availability is pretty impressive, considering the total was likely hampered, at least in some part, by piracy. Torrent Freak reports that in just two days, The Interview was downloaded over 1.5 million times via torrent sites.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/the-interview-nabs-15m-online-in-first-weekend-2014-12/feed0Here’s a Tribute to Some Great Directors Made Entirely with Stock Footagehttp://www.webpronews.com/heres-a-tribute-to-some-great-directors-made-entirely-with-stock-footage-2014-12
http://www.webpronews.com/heres-a-tribute-to-some-great-directors-made-entirely-with-stock-footage-2014-12#commentsMon, 22 Dec 2014 16:56:07 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=411506I’m not sure what this says, if anything, about modern directing and/or the quality of stock imagery – but I like it.

Shutterstock, giant purveyor of stock photography, video footage, and music, has decided to use some of its assets to construct some pretty cool tributes to a handful of famous directors.

Yes, the video you’re about to see was created with nothing but stock footage.

The segments on Wes Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, and David Fincher are good enough. But what really shines is the use of stock video to recreate the look and feel of a Terrence Malick film. Just wait for it.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/heres-a-tribute-to-some-great-directors-made-entirely-with-stock-footage-2014-12/feed0AMC Theatres Now Offering Movie-a-Day Subscription Planhttp://www.webpronews.com/amc-theatres-now-offering-movie-a-day-subscription-plan-2014-12
http://www.webpronews.com/amc-theatres-now-offering-movie-a-day-subscription-plan-2014-12#commentsWed, 17 Dec 2014 15:58:55 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=410968]]>In a move to get people out of their houses and watching movies at the theater as much as they’re watching them from their couches, AMC Theatres is partnering with MoviePass to bring a subscription model to the theatergoer.

AMC will let customers pay a monthly fee to gain virtually unlimited access to screenings (it’s not quite unlimited, but at one movie per day it’s pretty close).

The subscription will be offered in connection with MoviePass, the country’s largest movie theater subscription facilitator. Film fans can pay $35 per month to have access to one standard (2D) movie per day. And for $45 per month, they’ll have access to one movie a day in any format.

“This is the first time a premium level subscription service has been launched in the U.S. and marks a significant step forward by offering passionate movie lovers the premium sight and sound experiences available in movie theatres,” said Stacy Spikes, CEO and Co-Founder of MoviePass. “We believe this premium tier subscription, combined with a new online ticketing feature, will appeal to our largest demographic, 18-34-year-old movie goers. Our goal is to keep people coming out to the movies again and again.”

Theater visits have been on the decline with the advent of on-demand, Netflix, and other streaming options. By tapping into the current obsession with “subscription” services, AMC is looking to get more people through the doors.

“AMC Theatres leads the way in the movie exhibition industry in offering innovations that ‘wow’ our customers,” said Christina Sternberg, senior vice president of Corporate Strategy and Communications. “This pilot will provide more convenience for our guests, and responds to the preference of many consumers for monthly entertainment subscriptions such as music and magazines, which we believe will increase the frequency of movie going.”

This will run as a small test program at first in only two cities – Denver and Boston. But if it’s successful, you’d imagine that AMC will offer it in more markets as soon as they can.

The film is the first of a planned remake/prequel/sequel/reboot trilogy, and Genisys is set to be released on July 1, 2015. The two sequels have the scheduled release dates of May 19, 2017 and June 29, 2018, respectively.

The synopsis of the film reads, “The year is 2029. John Connor, leader of the resistance continues the war against the machines. At the Los Angeles offensive, John’s fears of the unknown future begin to emerge when TECOM spies reveal a new plot by SkyNet that will attack him from both fronts; past and future, and will ultimately change warfare forever.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger reprises his iconic role as the Terminator T-800 model, and the trailer features a new Sarah Conner (played by Emilia Clarke), a new Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) and a new, heavily scarred John Connor (Jason Clarke). A new, liquid metal T-1000 model is played by South Korean actor Byung-hun Lee.

Here is the trailer:

Fans of the Terminator series seem a bit skeptical over the latest reworking of the cash-cow franchise:

All in all, the trailer does feature a scene in which Schwarzenegger dives into helicopter blades.

Terminator Genysis was directed by Alan Taylor, and written by Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier. The film had a budget of roughly $170 million.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/terminator-genisys-reboot-trailer-online-2014-12/feed0Anna Kendrick Sings ‘Into the Woods’ Songhttp://www.webpronews.com/anna-kendrick-sings-into-the-woods-song-2014-12
http://www.webpronews.com/anna-kendrick-sings-into-the-woods-song-2014-12#commentsSat, 06 Dec 2014 01:23:06 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=408925Actress and singer Anna Kendrick will appear in the upcoming film adaptation of the Broadway musical Into the Woods, and Disney released the audio of one of the songs she will perform.

The track is called “On the Steps of the Palace,” and in the film, Kendrick’s Cinderella character sings it to her prince, played by Star Trek: Into Darkness star Chris Pine.

Stephen Sondheim is the composer of the original musical, and Kendrick commented about what it was like working with him – “I had a really great and unique experience with Sondheim,” the 29-year-old remarked.

“He was around giving me new lyrics, and I stood there and tried not to mess them up! That was obviously really exciting to realize that the material was still living and breathing and that I got to be a part of a song that was changing for the film adaptation.”

Here is Kendrick’s rendition of “On the Steps of the Palace”:

The film, a Walt Disney Pictures production, was adapted from a Tony Award-winning musical created by Sondheim and James Lapine. Into the Woods is an amalgam of various Grimm fairy tales, and concerns a childless couple who seek to break a hex they were cursed with by a sullen witch.

The script adds a different take on various established fantasies including Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk and Cinderella. Kendrick, who plays a brunette Cinderella, commented, “it’s sort of all the fairy tales more or less as you know them, you know, intersecting and creating some degree of chaos in the woods.”

The Twilight franchise actress, who garnered Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress for her work in 2009′s Up In The Air, added, “Cinderella is more or less the same story that we know for the first half of the movie. Then, of course, the second half is when all the characters have to come face to face with the consequences of their actions.”

Here is the trailer for Into the Woods:

Into the Woods was directed by Rob Marshall, and co-stars Meryl Streep, Chris Pine, Emily Blunt and Johnny Depp. The film opens on Christmas day.

In related news, out of Kendrick’s roughly two dozen tweets centered around the Thursday broadcast of Peter Pan Live!, the mostly profound would likely be a toss up between the following:

The two had filmed parts of The Light Between Oceans in Australia. Fassbender, 37, was photographed with the 26-year-old actress at Bondi Beach in Sydney. German-born Fassbender went surfing, and then joined Vikander on shore for a meal.

The Light Between Oceans is based on the 2013 novel by M.L. Stedman, and is set for release in 2015.

Here is the synopsis:

After four harrowing years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne (Fassbender) returns to Australia and takes a job as the lighthouse keeper. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes once a season, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel (Vikander). Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby. The couple keeps the baby, and name her Lucy.

When they eventually go to the mainland, they discover that a woman (played by Rachel Weisz) has been searching for her lost husband and child.

In October, Fassbender and Vikander were spotted in the Marlborough region of New Zealand at a local massage parlor, soon after the The Light Between Oceans cast and crew celebrated her October 3 birthday:

Fassbender earned a 2014 Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role as slave owner Edwin Epps in 12 Years a Slave.

Vikander’s filmography includes Anna Karenina, A Royal Affair and The Fifth Estate.

The actress has been linked to fellow Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgard, while Fassbender had dated Zoe Kravitz and Naomi Campbell in the past.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/alicia-vikander-dating-co-star-michael-fassbender-2014-12/feed0Natalie Portman Rumored for ‘Major Role’ in New Steve Jobs Filmhttp://www.webpronews.com/natalie-portman-rumored-for-major-role-in-new-steve-jobs-film-2014-11
http://www.webpronews.com/natalie-portman-rumored-for-major-role-in-new-steve-jobs-film-2014-11#commentsWed, 26 Nov 2014 20:41:43 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=407207At this point, it feels like the long-promised Steve Jobs biopic based on Walter Isaacson’s bestselling biography may never actually happen. After months in limbo, enduring a revolving door of attached talent, Sony finally dropped the film earlier this month. Universal picked it up, however, so it looks like things are back on track.

And today, there’s news that a big name might already be attached.

Deadline is reporting that Natalie Portman is in talks to join the film – as a yet unspecified “major role”.

If you’re wondering what’s been going on with the movie for the past year or so, here’s a brief explainer of the headaches surrounding the film:

The film was first announced in May of 2012, and soon after Sony hired Aaron Sorkin to pen the screenplay. He finished the script and submitted it in January of this year.

Since then, it’s been a talent carousel. David Fincher was first attached to the project (he and Sorkin had worked together on another film, The Social Network). It was reported that Fincher wanted Christian Bale for the lead role – and that it was pretty much a Bale or Bust ultimatum.

In April, Fincher exited the project amid reports that he was making “aggressive demands for compensation and control.”

After all that, Sony Pictures dropped the film and a few days later, Universal picked it up for somewhere around $30 million.

Now, in the hands of Universal, we have Natalie Portman being tossed around. As to who’s going to play the title role, well, that’s still up in the air. Michael Fassbender is the current pick – though that’s yet to be confirmed. As far as the other Apple co-founder goes, Steve Wozniak might very well be given to Seth Rogen.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/natalie-portman-rumored-for-major-role-in-new-steve-jobs-film-2014-11/feed0Steve Jobs Movie Finds New Life at Universalhttp://www.webpronews.com/steve-jobs-movie-finds-new-life-at-universal-2014-11
http://www.webpronews.com/steve-jobs-movie-finds-new-life-at-universal-2014-11#commentsTue, 25 Nov 2014 13:49:25 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=406792The Steve Jobs movie has life, as Universal Pictures has decided to pick up the recently-abandoned project.

Last week, Sony Pictures abruptly ditched the high-profile film. It appeared that the company had become a bit frustrated with the project, which had been sitting in limbo watching an acting/directing carousel spin – despite having a completed script since January. Rumor had it that Universal was looking to buy it, and it appears that is the case, confirms The Hollywood Reporter.

Here’s a brief explainer of the headaches surrounding the film:

The film was first announced in May of 2012, and soon after Sony hired Aaron Sorkin to pen the screenplay. He finished the script and submitted it in January of this year.

Since then, it’s been a talent carousel. David Fincher was first attached to the project (he and Sorkin had worked together on another film, The Social Network). It was reported that Fincher wanted Christian Bale for the lead role – and that it was pretty much a Bale or Bust ultimatum.

In April, Fincher exited the project amid reports that he was making “aggressive demands for compensation and control.”